✨ Electricity Regulation Interrelationship
30 OCTOBER 2006
NEW ZEALAND GAZETTE, No. 123
Interrelationship with the Commerce Commission
101
This section sets out the Government’s expectations and intentions regarding
the interrelationship between the Commerce Commission and the Electricity
Commission with regard to the regulation of Transpower and electricity lines
businesses by the Commerce Commission under the Commerce Act 1986 and
the Electricity Commission under the Electricity Act 1992.
102
The Government expects the Commerce Commission and the Electricity
Commission to work together closely to ensure that their respective roles are
well co-ordinated, and to minimise any scope for uncertainties regarding
jurisdictional issues.
103
Under the Commerce Act 1986 the Commerce Commission is charged with
operating targeted control of electricity lines businesses including Transpower
for the long term benefit of consumers. Under this regime, the Commission is
required to set thresholds for electricity lines businesses, determine whether
any businesses have breached those thresholds, and if so, consider whether
to impose control on the prices, revenues and quality standards of those
businesses11. Where the Commerce Commission has declared all or any
goods or services supplied by an electricity lines business to be under control,
that business is unable to supply those goods or services unless an
authorisation or undertaking relating to the price, revenue or quality of the
services has come into effect.
104
Under the Electricity Act 1992, the Electricity Commission is empowered to
make recommendations to the Minister of Energy on regulations and rules on
a number of issues relating to:
i
power quality standards; reliability standards for the national grid;
upgrades, expansions and replacements of Transpower’s grid assets;
terms and conditions for connection to the grid; and pricing
methodologies for the recovery of Transpower’s revenue requirements;
ii
terms and conditions for the connection of generation to distribution
lines;
iii
pricing methodologies for the recovery of the revenue requirements of
electricity distributors, and
iv
terms and conditions for the use of lines (and related services) by
competing retailers.
105
It is evident that the exercise of the Electricity Commission’s functions,
responsibilities and powers affects the work of the Commerce Commission,
and vice versa.
106
The Commerce Act 1986 and the Electricity Act 1992 have been amended to:
i
require the Commerce Commission to take into account, when
exercising its duties and powers under Part 4A of the Commerce Act
1986, any regulations and rules made under the Electricity Act 1992
11 The Commerce Act, as amended in 2004, precludes the Commerce Commission from setting
quality standards for Transpower.
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Online Sources for this page:
VUW Te Waharoa —
NZ Gazette 2006, No 123
Gazette.govt.nz —
NZ Gazette 2006, No 123
✨ LLM interpretation of page content
🏛️ Interrelationship between Commerce Commission and Electricity Commission
🏛️ Governance & Central AdministrationCommerce Commission, Electricity Commission, Regulation, Coordination, Jurisdiction